Germany's consumer price index rose in line with forecasts in February

According to the report from the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis), the inflation rate in Germany, measured as the year-on-year change in the consumer price index, stood at +1.3% in February 2021. After the temporary value added tax cut had ended on 31 December 2020, the inflation rate reached its pre-crisis level for the second month in a row. The Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) also reports that consumer prices rose by 0.7% compared with January 2021.

The prices of goods (total) were up 1.0% in February 2021 on February 2020. Energy products prices (+0.3%) were slightly higher than in the same month a year earlier, after declining by 2.3% in January 2021. In February 2021, year-on-year price increases were recorded especially for motor fuels (+2.4%), natural gas (+2.1%) and heating oil (+1.1%). This was due not only to the CO2 charge introduced at the beginning of the year but also the price increase recorded on the crude oil market. Food prices rose by 1.4%, which means that the increase in food prices slowed down (January 2021: +2.2%). Higher prices were recorded in particular for confectionery and dairy products (+2.7% each). Marked price rises were also observed for tobacco products (+3.9%), although with a lower weight, while notable decreases were recorded, for instance, for mobile phones (-9.2%).

Excluding energy prices, the rate of inflation would have been +1.4% in February 2021.